Five AFL Player Managers Fined for Betting Breaches

Five Australian Football League (AFL) player managers have been reprimanded by the AFL agents’ accreditation board for betting on games in 2015. The agents all received fines for the betting breaches.

The five – Garry Winter, Luke Holland, Nick Gieschen, Olaf Borutz and Wayne Loxley – were sanctioned following an investigation that was conducted earlier this year.

All the agents were fined $500 and instructed to undergo the AFL’s online gambling education module; except for Winter who was fined $1,000 for placing multiple bets. The bets were placed on the AFL and, in one case, on an International Rules match. None of the bets placed were for more than $100.

While the AFL accreditation board ensured the bets were not placed using insider information, they took this situation seriously, with board chairman Brett Murphy stating, “The ABB [board] views any breach of the anti-gambling provisions of the Code of Conduct as a very serious matter.”

“After a thorough investigation in collaboration with the AFL, we feel the sanctions imposed are proportionate to the level of breach in each circumstance.”

The AFL Players Association has been cracking down on betting breaches. It emailed its agents to outline the sanctions that would be put in place and stressed that betting on football would not be tolerated. The league may also be considering the implementation of rules which would prevent agents from betting on state league matches.

Several players, officials and umpires have been suspended and/or banned from the league in the past for breaches of the anti-corruption rules. The AFL has also recently introduced rules that do not allow any media personnel to bet on matches they are covering within a five-hour window on the day of the match.